Mamelodi Sundowns coach Rulani Mokwena before facing Esperance in the CAF Champions League at Loftus Versfeld. Image: BackpagePix
Fact: Sundowns coach Rulani is younger than his player
A lot has been said about Rulani Mokwena in the past two seasons, but we forget about his age. One of his players is even older than him.
Mamelodi Sundowns coach Rulani Mokwena before facing Esperance in the CAF Champions League at Loftus Versfeld. Image: BackpagePix
Mamelodi Sundowns coach Rulani Mokwena is the youngest in the DStv Premiership at 37. Did you know that one of his players is older than him?
MAMELODI SUNDOWNS PLAYER OLDER THAN RULANI MOKWENA
According to the facts, Sundowns goalkeeper Denis Onyango will turn 39 this month, making the Ugandan star two years older than Mokwena, who had his 37th birthday in January.
GRANT KEKANA PRAISE
Meanwhile, one of Mokwena’s Sundowns players, Kekana has described how the young coach transformed his career and life. The 31-year-old Kekana believes that Mokwena turned him into a champion.
The Polokwane-born star started his career in July 2021 from SuperSport United. His previous clubs include the University of Pretoria, where he spent two years.
Kekana’s trophies so far:
- MTN8 (with SuperSport)
- MTN8 (with Sundowns)
- DStv Premiership
- DStv Premiership
- Nedbank Cup (with SuperSport United)
- Nedbank Cup (with SuperSport United)
- Nedbank Cup (with Sundowns)
- African Football League (with Sundowns).
“In my first season here, we won the treble. So, he had turned me into a winner, someone who believes in winning and goes into games wanting to win, wanting to improve as a player and as a person,” Kekana said via FARPost.
“He reiterates how much [important] being a good human being is, he shows it himself and it rubs out on all of us as players. We all have our stories about him, I’m sure even Terrence [Mashego] who was also in the press conference] has his,” the Sundowns defender added.
“He expects so much but he shows the work that he puts in each and everyday. There’s days where we do video sessions and you can see hasn’t slept or he slept an hour or two but he still shows up.
“And that’s the work, it makes it easier for us to get into the field. Those are the sacrifices he’s talking about, it helps us take ourselves seriously because he invests so much into this game.
“And it just rubs out on each and every one of us as players. We’re only grateful to be working with a coach like coach Rulani,” Kekana concluded on his Sundowns mentor.
Coming up next is a trip to Durban to face Golden Arrows in the league on Wednesday, before Orlando Pirates in the Nedbank Cup final in Mbombela on 1 June.
Should Kekana be considered for the DStv Premiership Defender of the Season Award? Let us know in the comments section below.
